Author: wheeledped

It is the beginning of a new year. And I’m asking a bunch of 6-7 years olds, who I have only known for 5 weeks, to tell me about their academic and social successes and goals. Their answers are cute, wacky and hilarious in equal measure. But their answers are also very revealing and informative. Not in the way that this process was “probably” intended to produce. Experience tells me that attempting to capture their ‘voice’ in this way is not meaningful or helpful. It’s as though I am speaking in a foreign language. Over the years I have taken these children’s responses as evidence and motivation to change my teaching practice. It has provoked me into thinking more freely and deeply about what student agency is, and what it isn’t. But teachers are asked repeatedly to go through this very process on a regular basis. And teachers oblige. No questions asked. Just lots of muttering and stressing.

This received interpretation of student agency has never been explained to me or to any other teacher that I have spoken to. Woe betide any teacher who dares to ask the ‘why’ question. So in fact, I can only guess that the process I have described in the preceding paragraph is actually about student agency at all. Yes, “probably”. I can only assume therefore, that this is how student agency has been interpreted. Or perhaps more precisely, misinterpreted. As you may have figured out by now, I totally get the idea of the how and why student agency is a good thing to have. A curious, engaged student is going to be a much better learner. The learner in the driver’s seat, directing their learning has got to be great. I have built my success of effective teaching and learning on this notion. Wacky nonsensical responses to my earnest questions were my provocation to get to this point. But to put it simply, for many a 6-7 year old, after a whole 5 weeks at school, the only meaningful goal at the beginning of the year would be to sit quietly on the mat for 5 minutes. How is it that we have lost sight of that? Water flows freely down hill. It can be guided and pooled. But working with it, not against is most effective. I like to think of water and learning as having similar qualities.

So now let me describe

what student agency looks like in my classroom,

how I go about creating it,

why I see it as a worthwhile goal.

In my classroom at the beginning of the year, it is my ‘voice’ that is dominant. I am setting the culture, expectations, building relationships, providing a framework and a structure that is visible and consistent. It is more about psychology than teaching at this stage of the year. And I maintain the ‘benevolent dictator’ role throughout the year. I am the expert. I convey that message. I invite them to join me on a learning journey. That is not such an easy task if a student has not experienced this expectation before (or is still learning the skills of self-management). It takes time to convince a student to grasp this reality if they have only ever had teaching and learning ‘done to them’. I know what knowledge they need to know and how best to learn it. I know my impact. And as Graeme Aitken describes, the learning environment needs to be “teacher led, student sensitive”.

It is thanks to this approach that, as the year progresses, the students start to take “ownership” of their learning. The process of learning speeds up. Increasingly, the onus goes on the children to fill in the gaps that I have highlighted to them. I provide extra support to the children who need it – whether it is due to cognitive issues or social/emotional/attitude issues. Classmates are used to provide the extra support that is needed. The analogy being, the firehose has been turned off and in its place there are water fountains in the room for the students to drink from (the fountains being myself, other students, resources in the classroom, parents). My initial job is to get them to drink; to want to drink. Once that culture has been established, my job becomes easier.

It is from this point that the students who have mastered the essential knowledge are provided with opportunities to explore and be creative with this new knowledge and mastery. And that’s when the magic starts to happen. That’s when the ‘genuine’ student agency starts to kick in. The learning becomes a more organic and dynamic process – a learning conversation. The students get excited about their ability and potential. They seem to rediscover their curiosity. It becomes contagious. I then become a conductor – responding to their needs and wants – learning from the students. This is the formative assessment process at its most dynamic. And it is all built on from a foundation of strong relationships, high but appropriate expectations and, the teacher’s expertise.

So which interpretation of student agency do you prefer? If you are a regular reader of this blog, I think I know your answer. The next question has to be, “how is it possible to get education leaders to recognise this alternative interpretation?” I know teachers who understand implicitly what I am describing and would grasp the opportunity to implement this ‘alternative’ version ably and willingly. But they don’t. And I think I know why they don’t. Beliefs and biases are rife. It may go some way to explaining why the teaching profession fails to attract and retain good teachers. Maybe. Just reread this post and replace the words ‘student agency’ with the words ‘teacher agency’.

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Managing behaviour in the classroom is a topic that interests me and one that I have spent a lot of time exploring and trying to develop expertise in. That’s because I see it as a critical element in achieving the best learning outcomes for all students equally. If it’s true that the best learning takes place when students are the agents of that learning, then it makes sense that, for it to happen, students need to be able to self-manage.

It came as a surprise to me recently when I heard an “expert” on behaviour make a statement that contradicted my experience and knowledge. It required me to stop and reflect on my practice. Maybe I was getting something wrong. Was I guilty of contravening this advice? The message went something like this.

“It is not appropriate to punish a student’s bad behaviour by excluding that student from an event outside of the classroom; something like a sports event, or anything that the student would find enjoyable, or was good at”.

Let’s break it down. On the face of it, this seems to make good sense. There is an obvious lack of connection between the misbehaviour and the event the student would be excluded from. This is the same argument I use to explain why the giving certificates at a school assembly held fortnightly will have minimal impact on modifying behaviour in the classroom. So what I see here is a case of good science being applied randomly and/or inconsistently. This is a complex situation that needs to be understood fully in order to be effective. The science needs to be applied consistently to be effective.

However, alarm bells really started to ring for me when the following explanation for this rationale was provided.

“It’s not fair for a student, who may not be experiencing success in the classroom, to be excluded from an activity that may be the only place that the child gets to experience success”.

Unfortunately, I see this as an example of the deficit thinking that is prevalent in education, and society in general. To believe that the child will only ever experience success in a non-academic way is an example of how negative belief systems undermine efforts to improve learning outcomes for all students. It’s a case of the teacher being misinformed and putting the focus on achievement and results rather than on growth and improvement. It is in these situations that teachers need to be reflecting on in their teaching practice. As in, “what can I do to engage with that student more effectively? Or how can I help that student to be better at self-managing; to recognise that effort will result in improvement; that effort, whether it be on the sports field or in the classroom, will result in improvement?”

It’s quite possible that a teacher’s compassion for under-achieving students is actually doing students a disservice. The answer lies in getting along side your students, individually and collectively, building a relationship with them, understanding them and helping them to bring out their best. Students need high expectations, compassion and expertise in teaching and learning. Get the learning environment right. And get your mindset right.

For an example of how mindset can have an impact on learning outcomes, check out psychologist Carol Dweck in this Ted Talk below….(16 minutes in, though I would highly recommend listening to the whole show).

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Meet Botley, the programmable robot. I use Botley to introduce the concept of coding. In the past I have also used an iPad App called Kodable which I would also recommend.

Based on my experience, I am no longer amazed at how quickly 5 and 6 year old students can master coding. This observation has led me to appreciate that the current teaching model tends to act as a ceiling on learning – the teacher as “gatekeeper” rather than “catalyst”.

I approach the introduction of coding technology into the classroom in an indirect way. I introduced Botley briefly to the whole class. I then bring Botley out during the “student-led” time of the day. There is a lot of curiosity and enthusiasm so I find myself having to be the “gatekeeper” in terms of allocation of opportunity. Of course, curiosity and enthusiasm does not always translate into competence. So I persevere until I have found a student who grasps the concept the quickest. I then use this student to be the teacher/model.

Check out the video below to see where we are at so far. And please listen in to the interaction between the “teacher” and the “student” and the self-talk.

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I treasure this letter. It came to me from a 6 year old boy in my classroom. He wrote it at home and gave it to me when he arrived at school one morning. It’s been sitting on my desk at home ever since. Every time I sit down at my computer it’s there. I see it. I marvel at it. I contemplate what to do with it. I’m tempted to frame it. “What’s the big deal?” you ask. It’s just a letter. Children do this kind of thing all the time. Yes, but it’s because this letter reveals so much. In this letter, I recognise the impact I have had on him. It reflects the quality of the relationship I have built up with this child.

And in his letter I also see real learning. Learning in the way that is natural to children. I see his attempts to form the letters based on the way I have instructed him. I see the errors – the reversals that are entirely appropriate for a 6 year old, the crossing out and the corrections. It reveals deliberateness and purpose. The desire to write, to communicate, to explore and enter the adult word. Problem solving even. To me, this letter yells “I am an effective, engaged learner”. I mean, he could have just told me that he was planning to bring a cake. He didn’t have to write it. I can imagine the conversation between the child and his parents at home. The search for paper and a pen. The adult support that made it possible for this child to fulfill his desire to communicate in writing (when it was actually time for bed, perhaps).

I love this letter because it demonstrates and reflects so beautifully how a 6 year old’s learning should take place – but which is so commonly denied in a typical school environment. It’s a type of learning that reflects how children learn best. A type of learning that reflects the curiosity and natural developmental progressions of a child. I see examples of this type of learning taking place all the time in my classroom. Children choosing to write, to read books, to solve maths puzzles – to apply and test out their knowledge and skills.

Teaching is a word that has traditionally been, and continues to be, interpreted so narrowly. Teaching should be about providing children with a learning environment with plenty of space and time to grow and develop their own learning – to be curious, to test themselves, to make mistakes, to think critically. The most critical role of a teacher is to listen, respond, nudge – to not be a barrier to a child’s natural way of learning. From my personal experience, I marvel at the amazing learning that can be achieved when this approach to learning is embraced. When the learning is made visible. When the children are invited to lead their learning journey. When they are invited to share and acknowledge their accomplishments and discoveries. It allows for a highly sustainable, upward spiral of learning success to be perpetuated. Trusting the children to learn. Seeing is believing.

Until recently I felt destined to live with the label given to me of “Disobedient Teacher”. I always felt that it was a price worth paying in order to get the best learning outcomes for all the students in my class. But things have changed. I now understand that I am simply practicing evidence-based teaching. But the unfortunate reality is, engaging in evidence-based teaching flies in the face of the prevailing orthodoxy. It means having to accept the disobedient label. That’s wrong. But it’s the current reality. If we are serious about improving learning outcomes for all students that needs to change.

The biggest change in my teaching practice and consequently, the biggest impact I have been able to have on student learning achievement has come about as a result of ensuring that every student is successful – appreciating that the cost of failure is too high. My target became more than just success for 80% of the students. Or 90%. Or 95 or 99%. 100% was the target. It’s amazing what happens when you put the students who are at risk of failing at the forefront of your teaching practice. Those questions that teachers should always be asking themselves such as, “how am I doing?” or “what’s my impact?” really become meaningful and informative. It’s an amazing feeling when you realise that your teaching practice is having a positive impact on all students, including the at-risk ones. But once again, teaching in this evidence-based way puts you in conflict with the status-quo. That’s because it’s hard to change teacher beliefs about their teaching and their students. It shouldn’t be, but it is.

I have discovered that positive change will only come from breaking rules – rules that should be broken. Rule breaking can be constructive if it is supported by quality evidence. Some will say that breaking rules is too risky. To which I reply – the risk and consequences of not embracing change is far greater. Others will say that breaking rules creates discomfort. And to that I say – that’s why we need leaders who can understand and manage that discomfort. The reality is that most of us don’t want to be challenged. We just want to take the path of least resistance. Agreement and consensus is the easiest option. Cooperation is too easily interpreted as collaboration. Diversity of thinking should be encouraged – that is, as long as the thinking is evidence-based.

My success in the classroom has not only come about due to my willingness to take risks. It stems from a child-like curiosity and a willingness to ask lots of those unwelcome “why” questions. I also require the students in my class to engage in a similar level of curiosity. That explains a lot. These days when I’m stuck, I put myself in the shoes of the students in front of me. Or better still, I ask those 5-6 year olds to come up with the solution. It’s a culture of learning that allows the students to move beyond being passive receivers of learning to being active agents of their own learning.

What are you waiting for? It can be done but don’t expect a 5 bullet point presentation to be the way forward. Be curious. Break some rules if you need to.

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I was asked the other day to list 5 things I do in my teaching life to manage stress. I thought long and hard and came up with these 5. In no particular order they are:-

Knowing my impact.

Knowing my impact.

Knowing my impact.

Knowing my impact.

Knowing my impact.

I was quite a few years into my teaching career when I needed to make a difficult decision. I had to either learn to manage the stress and heavy workload that seemed an inherent part of a teaching career or, leave teaching all together. I’m glad I chose the former. I can’t recall the exact process but at some point I stopped doing things – things that were requiring lots of effort on my behalf but were not, I believed, making significant enough contribution to the learning growth of all the students in my class. I focused more on my relationship with the students and started to appreciate that they were my best resource – they could tell me what they knew and what they wanted to know. I started to become open to the possibility that I could inform my teaching practice by listening, observing and responding to them. I didn’t realise it then but this was the beginning of my journey down the path towards creating a classroom with high levels of student agency.

Things have progressed a long way since then – since I first started to recognise that I could have an impact. That the students were learning thanks to me, not despite me. These days my class is filled with wonderful examples of students leading their academic and social learning experience. Like the time recently during student-led ‘green time’ when some students were having trouble sharing some equipment. Their first response was to come to me and ask for my assistance in resolving the problem – a problem that all humans, big and small get to experience. Because I knew that the equipment they were wanting to play with was highly sought after, I had plenty of leverage. So I simply invited them to:-

a) put the equipment away and choose some other activity or,

b) sit down and find a solution amongst themselves.

And so I watched them out of the corner of my eye while they discussed the problem for 5-10 minutes. Then they returned to me and a spokesperson explained to me what they had decided to do. Problem solved. And that was how it remained.

Of course, it won’t be the last conflict that they will experience. But next time these and students and myself will have a successful experience to draw on. This is a very powerful and sustainable approach to teaching and learning. Not only do I know my impact but I can also say quite legitimately that these particular students are getting to know their impact.

So hopefully you can see that the consequences of teachers knowing their impact is far greater than simply providing better learning outcomes for students. It’s also a way for teachers to manage what can potentially be a stressful job. That’s got to be an incentive to change your teaching practice. Surely?!

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Correlation: as ‘student agency’ increases, ‘blue’ time decreases and ‘green’ time increases.

“Student agency” is a phrase that you may have been hearing a lot lately in an education context. That’s because experts have determined that “student agency” is an essential ingredient in helping drive student success in learning – the equivalent of an educational “holy grail”. “Students as teachers, teachers as learners”, is the way Hattie describes it. I have already written a lot about the success I’ve been experiencing as a result of bringing this theory into reality

It will probably come as no surprise that I often find myself frustrated in the way I see this term being defined and interpreted. At present I see it being interpreted in its most literal sense. That is, student engagement (agency) is simply about wanting to see students occupied, involved and excited in the activities that teachers are serving up to them. But of course, that’s insufficient if improving the learning outcomes of all students is the intended goal. At best, this is a description of “student agency-lite”. The full potential of “student agency” to improve learning growth for all students will only be realised when it is understood and implemented at its deepest meaning and intent.

Full-bodied, meaningful student engagement is a combination of learning that involves sustained effort and deep, intentional thinking. In a school setting I too often see “student agency” being interpreted as bringing or pushing students into learning – getting the students excited about a topic, lesson or activity. Giving them “responsibilities”. Busy work. Lots of fanfare, inducements, prizes, bells and whistles – the works. In other words, lots of external motivation. Lots of energy expended, lots of exhausted teachers, lots of perspiration, limited inspiration. You get the picture. Oh so familiar. I feel exhausted just thinking about it. As you can imagine, reliance on this approach means that the excitement fades very quickly, and the deeper learning fails to fire.

Let’s take a step back to see if we can figure out what’s going on. Students are human. They work for external rewards. Just like you and I do. I teach because I get paid. But I also explore ways of teaching better and describing these experiences on this blog in my free time because I am internally motivated and intrinsically rewarded by the thrill of watching students progress as a result of my deliberate acts of teaching and also, hoping that this expertise could be monetised one day :). I can see that I have a bunch of intrinsically motivated learners in my class. That is, they are displaying high levels of student agency/engagement.

But it’s also important to understand that not all these children were at this point when they entered my class. I have had to engage in many deliberate acts of teaching in order to draw out the children’s natural curiosity and motivation – to try and develop this ephemeral thing called, “student agency”. (In case you are wondering how I know the students in my class are engaged in this way, then please note that I have a plan in process to collect some qualitative data to prove this point in the future). So, assuming I am making an accurate reflection, based on my own observations and the feedback of various other adults who have been in my classroom, what insights can I offer? Plenty, I hope.

All children are naturally curious. But unfortunately, there are plenty of reasons why children have had their curiosity quotient sucked out of them or are proficient at hiding it away. Adults are very good at ignoring or stifling this curiosity. It is the job of the teacher to unlock that curiosity, feed it and invite it to flourish. And may I hasten to add that this won’t happen by teachers rewarding compliance – compliant behaviour nor compliant thinking – which I dare say is the current prevalent practice. It’s those innately human skills that give teachers such potential to make great learning happen. If this wasn’t the case, learning would all be happening in front of a computer screen by now. Learning is a social activity and the teacher’s greatest facility is to inspire students and help them interact. Connect, inquire, respond, celebrate – repeat! This is actually just a synthesis of Hattie’s Visible Learning pedagogy. It’s an approach that teachers can utilise to help develop internalised motivation. Because deep learning is deeply satisfying. It’s contagious. Well that’s my experience. “Can we read another chapter of that book today?” “Can my friend and I play that number game?” Can I write a story?” It’s requests like these I hear everyday that are music to my ears.

Now let’s take a look at the weekly timetable above. I have started to notice that over the years a correlation between ‘student agency’, my effectiveness as a teacher and high rates of learning growth taking place in the class. As ‘student agency’ increases, the ‘blue’ time decreases and the ‘green’ time increases. The ‘blue’ time is when I do the fundamentals of literacy and numeracy. It’s about offering the foundation knowledge that all learners require to be successful learners. During this time there are high expectations on the children to engage and contribute to their own and their colleagues’ learning experience. And when they are not working directly with me (as a whole class, in a small group, or individually), they are expected to be engaged collaboratively and constructively in some developmentally appropriate and engaging learning activity – reading a range of books, completing number puzzles. So, even though it is teacher directed and led time, the students are required to be active in their learning and are given some degree of choice in how they want to engage.

The ‘green’ time is that time of the day when I invite the students to participate in independent and creative activities of their choice. There are a range of resources and activities available to the students in the classroom that are highly appealing and desirable. These activities hold a currency that have very persuasive qualities – even to the most reluctant, least curious learner. It’s just a matter of time, patience and consistency. Eventually, every student wants unfettered access to that ‘green’ time and the goodies that are available at that time of day. Eventually all learning behaviours – social and academic, become self-reinforcing and internalised. The appeal of play drives the students’ desire to move towards managing their emotions and taking ownership of their learning. At that point, my job is done. I can step back and be the conductor and the ‘head’ learner – roles that are so satisfying and rewarding. “So if you can do that, can you show your friend how to do it?” or, “Can you think of doing it a different way”? or, “Wow, I didn’t know you could do that/think like that.” Dynamic conversations and learning points. Formative assessment at it’s most effective.

As a result of making these changes, I have also noticed that I am once again able to use the ‘blue’ time to do more of the interesting stuff that typically gets dropped off the timetable due to a “crowded curriculum”. We are not having to spend all our time covering literacy and numeracy. In fact, the amount of time we are spending on these areas is decreasing. It’s a ‘win/win’. That’s because the learning is going so efficiently. I can’t push the students ahead any further. They are at all at their appropriate developmental level and the required national standard. As I have said before, national standards and creativity can co-exist. The interesting stuff I am talking about (for 5-6 year olds) are topics like – science (baking bread, planting seeds and experimenting with what they need to grow), literacy – (making snozzcumber jelly based on The BFG story). The sky’s the limit. Exciting, motivating, full of good learning opportunities for students and offering seamless links to literacy and numeracy. But just as importantly, these types of learning opportunities are manageable and sustainable from a teacher’s perspective.

And that still leaves plenty of time for the students to have enough ‘green’ time to simply ‘play’. But it is also worth highlighting the fact that even though this is ‘student-led’ time, this does not equate to a free-for-all. This kind of independent play time is premised on a code of conduct that has been co-created and is referred to on a regular basis. That takes lots of my input to keep it on track. It’s purpose is to build, maintain and reinforce high expectations and of course, that secret sauce called, ‘student agency’.

Finally, the biggest prize for getting to grips with this thing called, “student agency” is that ALL students will benefit. No student will be left behind. That may sound like a big claim but I am experiencing it first hand everyday. It’s hard to describe in words but you will know when it when you see it. Give it a go. But you will have to think differently.

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Creativity is is not actually a single idea created in a single moment.

I’ve been spending some time thinking about the question – what could creativity actually look like in a classroom/school setting? And I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not the absence of creativity in schools that we should be trying to address but the absence of student agency and effective teaching practice. And by agency, I mean every student being totally engaged with, and directing their own learning.

An analogy of the current prevailing teaching model is of a teacher pointing a fire hose at students and saying “open wide!” In contrast, the teaching model that defines high levels of student agency is of the water fountain that is available for students to drink from. Initially, the teacher’s task is to ensure that all children are taking on sufficient volumes of knowledge and are utilising it effectively. This task requires more than just curriculum knowledge. It requires skills of relationship – to know how much each child is willing and capable of absorbing and how willing and capable they are to apply that new knowledge. This is the human element of teaching – the teacher knowing every individual student’s capacity and being able to support them to build that capacity until learning becomes self-perpetuating. Students as self-directed learners etc.

It is at this point that creativity could flourish in a school setting. Students who are engaged and equipped with the essential knowledge can then springboard into creative pursuits. All that’s needed is a little bit of time, space and resources. How so? Because creativity is not actually a single idea created in a single moment. For example, take the creation of a unique dance. In a “creative” activity like producing a dance, most of the work is craft: the application of knowledge. You need to know how to dance – the technical qualities and features of a dance that the audience will recognise.

Nor are opportunities to be creative in the classroom limited to just the students. I am applying this same approach to creativity in how I teach. I have been teaching for a long time. I have built up a lot of experience. I know that the essential foundations of learning maths is familiarity with numbers – “come to the fountain and drink down some of this essential knowledge”. When I think the time is right, I start to introduce the idea of problem solving. Recently I have started to either,

ask the students to make their own problem and solve it, or

provide them with a problem with the answer and ask them to find as many different ways of getting to that answer.

It’s a very dynamic, oral-based process. Expectations are high. The children learn that they know better than anyone else what their ability/attitude level is. There are occasions of over or under reach which I need to remedy. Some need a bit of support. I help them fill in the knowledge gaps when necessary. Or better still, I get their student colleagues to help them do that. During this process I gain insights. I see light bulbs go on. It’s formative assessment at its most effective. I am looking to see who is working below, at or above their developmental level. I am in tune with every student’s academic and social level. And best of all, no one gets left behind.

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This tower of blocks was built on Monday by a group of 5 and 6 year olds. There were plenty of willing workers as well as plenty of discussion and negotiation. For this group of children it was the centre of their attention during the designated ‘play’ time on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. By Thursday attentions had turned to some other creative endeavour. On Friday afternoon I finally requested that the tower be ‘demolished’ and all the equipment returned to its correct place. Photos were taken and it was then taken down without complaint.

Throughout the whole week it was continually being repaired, remodelled, enhanced, adjusted. The ‘treasure’ in the middle of the tower was kept safe. At all times of the day, even if it wasn’t ‘play’ time, the children moved and worked around it. For me it turned out to be a wonderful learning opportunity – to observe the process and the interactions centred around this construction. I marvelled but was not surprised that the tower stayed up all week, or that it was built with such intent and purpose, or that it generated such high levels of student engagement.

Critically, at no stage during the week did I state explicitly how this tower should be managed. And this is the key element that I want to convey via this story. That is, it was the classroom culture, built up deliberately over time, that allowed for this scenario to take place. It did not happen by accident. It has taken time and it has taken deliberate, sustained and repeated actions by me. The ability to make great learning happen – whether it be academic, social or creative – is no accident. And the awareness of the deliberate actions that a teacher employs, to get the desired learning outcomes, is where the power lies. It is this culture that allows a super-charged learning environment to flourish.

For some time I have been an advocate for providing the students in my class with opportunities to “play” as a way of improving academic, social and creative learning outcomes. I too, was seduced by SKR’s argument to address the “creativity deficit” in schools. We are told that through play, children can develop social and cognitive skills, mature emotionally, and gain the self-confidence required to engage in new experiences and environments. And while I believe this argument is compelling, there is a ‘but’. I have recently come to realise that providing students with opportunities to ‘play’ or be ‘creative’ is, on it’s own, insufficient to generate the improved learning outcomes that we are told that we should be seeking for all children.

Why? Because the topic of conversation should be all about evidence and effective pedagogy. Teachers should be doing what works best to create high rates of learning for all students. Too often I see ‘play -based’ learning being introduced without a full understanding or awareness of its impact. The “why are we doing this?” question is not being asked or if it is being asked, it is not being answered satisfactorily. I fear that the potential value of ‘play-based’ learning, as a way of improving learning outcomes, is being squandered. As the above story reveals, I have certainly found value in offering students structured and deliberate ‘play’ time. That’s because it is intrinsically good but it works really effectively as a contingency. As in, “I want you to be creative and have lots of opportunities to play, but I also need you to be an engaged, self motivated learner who can manage your emotions.” External motivators eventually become internalised. That’s when my job is done. It’s at that point that the students take ownership of their learning and start teaching one another. I step back and watch the magic unfold. Teaching is really not as hard as you may have been led to believe.

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I’m always looking for evidence to prove that I have created the optimal learning environment for every 5 and 6 year old in my classroom. I want the best learning outcomes – academic, social, cultural – for everyone. I make changes if I think they will help me achieve that goal. I can do that because the wealth of experience I have built up over many years has given me confidence to make changes in order to keep improving. It’s a creative process that I find immensely rewarding. I read somewhere that creativity can be defined as, “simplifying the complex”. That sounds about right.

So what about this picture then? Isn’t it incredible? But it’s not just the picture itself that I find impressive. There is a whole back story to this picture that needs to be told. It’s actually, as you will probably guess, a story of pedagogy. A key element to this story is that I had no direct input into the creation of this artwork. My contribution was through a range of deliberate but indirect pedagogical actions. Let me explain.

First of all, it wasn’t that long ago that the artist in question was neither a willing or able drawer of pictures. Quite the opposite was true. At the moment this picture was celebrated with the whole class, it was met with authentic wonderment and awe by myself and the students. This is important to note because there is enormous power to be mined in this acknowledgement/sharing process. ie. “My colleagues and teacher genuinely appreciate my work and effort”. During this moment of sharing, I also ensured that the significance of that student’s learning journey was acknowledged. The message for everyone is, “Look at the progress I have made with a bit of effort. I wasn’t always this good. Effort pays off.” Diligence, perseverance… There is a lot of ‘visible learning’ pedagogy driving this seemingly minor investment in time. It’s also about placing high value and expectations on the students’ creative achievements.

Secondly, I have never taught the skills of drawing or creativity directly. But I have provided plenty of time, space and resources for the students to explore their interests and talents. During these periods of uninterrupted time, the children can choose from a range of available tasks and equipment. (It is not unusual to see students choose to complete numeracy puzzles or read books during this time). I have observed, over time, an increasing level of interest in drawing. The talented students (ie. the ones who had already tapped into their curiosity and creativity) become magnets to the newly curious. A wonderful sharing of ideas and talents develops and evolves.

Story reading is play. And so is storytelling. Both feed curiosity and feed on curiosity. Listening to stories tunes the ear and trains attention. – Scott G. Eberle Ph.D.

Another aspect of my indirect input into the creation of this calibre of artistic creativity is how large parts of our day are given over to storytelling – narratives. This has a very positive impact. It means the children are being constantly surrounded by words and ideas. Discussions start and evolve. Curiosities are piqued. I respond by providing more pictures and texts for the students to explore. During reading time or any ‘free time’, students choose to immerse themselves in these images and texts. They pour over them, absorbing the content like sponges, and utilising their incredible powers of observation. Their curiosity and ideas are contagious. They spread like wild fire.

So hopefully by now you can see that, by placing a high value on nurturing a positive learning environment, it will allow for students to become their own teachers. In turn, the teacher’s role then becomes one of keen observer, navigator, conductor and learner. It’s all in the pedagogy.